Sunday, February 5, 2012

Trio Bistro Stays on a Conventional Course

Lunchtime at Trio Bistro

Trio is a restaurant that conjures up the attitude and look of some establishments I’ve visited in southern Florida. I’m not talking about the beachside resorts, but the more sedate neighborhood diners found in Ft. Lauderdale and Miami suburbs. Eric and I frequented Trio in the '90s, but put it on the shelf early in the millennium when the menu wasn’t trendy anymore and the prices started creeping up. Molly and I were there for lunch recently so I wanted to see where this stalwart in the Kenwood area compared to others in the city.

The Stylish Interior

The restaurant was extensively remodeled in the mid 90’s when it introduced a fairly chic interior. Nothing has really changed with most of the design still working, although some more current fabrics would be a welcome update. Trio definitely caters to the business crowd at lunch and as the only destination of that sort available in the area, it serves that function well. We were seated in the back of the restaurant, which disturbed Molly at first but worked fine as a quieter spot to dine.

I remembered Trio for their entrée of Meatloaf. Thankfully it was still an offering, as Eric never serves it at home. Molly has some wheat restrictions so she checked out her choice of New England Diver Scallops and Soup du Jour of Roasted Broccoli and Gouda. Our waiter verified with the kitchen and all was a go.

Roasted Broccoli
and Gouda Soup du Jour

I decided to join her in trying the soup. It was different in a good way. At first the roasted flavor was a little pungent, but it definitely dissipated as time passed.

New England Diver Scallops

Three good sized plump scallops surrounded a bed of hot bacon Brussels sprout slaw. It certainly kicked the traditional offering up a couple of notches. The chef placed the Maker’s Mark butter sauce on the side (he thought the spices may have contained some wheat). Molly decided to try it anyway and found it to be a bit overpowering, but I felt the distinctive flavor complemented her succulent entrée appropriately.

Trio Meatloaf

My meatloaf was just as I remembered it -- a generous portion with robust flavor and seasoning topped with a brown sugar glaze. It sat atop garlic mashed potatoes surrounded by caramelized Brussels sprouts and carrots; all were tender and fresh.

There's a wide variety on the lunch menu from small plates to dinner entrées such as we had. Trio was one of the first restaurants to get on the gourmet pizza wagon and it's good to see that they're still coming up with new combinations. All in all, you'll find many of your favorite meals done well, but definitely not to the point that you won't recognize the flavors that you know and love.

About Dexter…

Dexter—professional listener

He ran his consulting business from a home he shared with us from the fall of 2010 to the spring of 2014. We all got along very well and liked to entertain and get together with our friends and families. He was a great listener and enjoyed tuning in to our thoughts on the entertaining things in life. We hope you enjoy the posts Dexter shared with us previous to his death in April of 2014. We promised him he would always be a part of the blog we all started together.